The Flagpole

Princethorpe College Headmaster, Ed Hester, is to take on a new dedicated role as Head of the Princethorpe Foundation. Mr Hester has been Headmaster at the College since 2009, with the dual role of Senior Foundation Head.

This forward-thinking decision by the governing body comes after a review of the overall management and leadership of the Foundation, which comprises senior school, Princethorpe College, prep schools, Crackley Hall and Crescent School and Little Crackers Nursery.

Separating the two roles will mean that Mr Hester will move away from the day-to-day running of the senior school and be able to dedicate more time to the strategic direction of the Foundation as a whole. He will work in partnership with the Board of Trustees, the Senior Management Teams and staff across all the Foundation schools to develop an ambitious vision and strategy for the next exciting stage in the Foundation’s evolution.

Comments, Liz Griffin, Chair of Trustees, “The Foundation has evolved significantly over the last ten years. As a result of mergers and the popularity of our schools we have grown from 800 pupils to over 1,400 today and we have over 250 members of staff, what’s more our schools are operating in a complex and ever-changing political, legal and economic climate. We are ambitious for the Foundation and the creation of this new dedicated role will ensure that we continue to develop and flourish.

She continues, “Ed, with his proven leadership and strategic skills, is uniquely placed to fulfil this role. He has done an outstanding job as Headmaster of Princethorpe College, and I am delighted he is taking on the new role. We understand how important it will be to find the right person to take over from him as Head of Princethorpe College and the recruitment process is already underway, with a view to having his successor in post within the next twelve months. Of course, Ed will continue to have a very keen interest in life at Princethorpe and be on hand to ensure a smooth transition and successful handover to the new Head, who will be supported by Princethorpe’s excellent Senior Leadership Team.”

Consultants, RSAcademics, are assisting the Foundation with the search for and appointment of the new Head.

Although the result did not go their way yesterday, we could not be any prouder of our First XI Girls' Hockey squad who have had a simply incredible season. They competed yesterday in the England Hockey Schools Championships semi-final against a strong side from RGS Newcastle. Unfortunately, they did not come out on top, losing 4-2, in a close game where they had two goals disallowed and was competitive from end to end. To reach the last four in the country in this competition is a truly outstanding feat, one that has not been done at Princethorpe before. It is a testament to the hard work, commitment and togetherness that this team has shown this season. 16 wins, 2 draws and 3 losses, that is a huge accomplishment. Well done to every player who has been part of this team, we could not have asked for any more from you. We ask you all to congratulate the girls on their phenomenal season. They have done themselves and the school extremely proud and we are in awe of them all.

Playing for Princethorpe College First XI Hockey Squad this year: Mia Johnson, Molly Harper, Jess Mackenzie, Eve Farquharson, Sophie Gray, Alice Whittaker, Tilly Houghton, Lara Tripp-Smith, Emilia Scimeca, Sophie Tudor, Anneliesa Douglas, Evie Phillips, Milly Hemmings, Grace Thomas, Lucia McCosker-New and Jess Evans.

Two Princethorpe College Sixth Form students are thrilled to have received offers for places at Cambridge University.

Head Girl, Caitlin Mason, will be reading Psychological and Behavioural Sciences at Magdalene College, Cambridge while Sixth Form prefect and Fisher House Captain, Greg Burford, will read Music at Girton College, Cambridge.

Oxbridge places are always oversubscribed and increasingly competitive, and these talented students have faced a tough selection process consisting of pre-tests, intensive scrutiny of their academic and personal achievements and rigorous interviews.

Their success is not achieved without a great deal of hard work, as well as hours of dedicated support and encouragement from their teachers and parents who have provided individual guidance and support over the past few months.

Princethorpe College Head of Sixth Form, Ben Collie, commented, “Caitlin and Greg have earned this success. During their time at Princethorpe College they have not only applied themselves to their academic studies but also to developing themselves as confident and mature young people. Applying to Oxbridge is an extremely rigorous and character-testing experience that seems to get tougher every year. We were delighted to support them with their applications and are exceptionally proud of their achievement.”

We are very proud of them both and of all our Upper Sixth students applying to study at university next year, the majority of whom have now received offers through the UCAS system with many receiving offers from all five of their university choices.

The first signs of the Science build commencing are afoot, as today, Friday 4 February, marked the formal end of lessons in the portacabins. The Geography, Business and Economics departments and Tutor groups AEG, FMT, FHB and MSD are all relocating to new homes as the College prepares for the construction of the new Science Centre.

The Grounds team have been getting ready for the build for a while, working hard to relocate all the beech hedging that surrounds what we affectionally know as the ‘huts’ or ‘the Limettes’. With pupils helping, as part of their Outdoor Education lessons as they worked towards their John Muir Award, the hedging has been replanted on the Orchard Walk, the Nut Walk and up next to Switzerland.

Over the next two weeks the portacabins will be stripped by our Estates Team before being handed over to Trendgrey, the construction company. Then during half term a segregated construction compound will be erected around the site and the access road for the construction traffic behind the tennis courts will be reinstated, before the real work begins.

After nearly twenty years it is the end of an era here at school for the portacabins, but it is not the end of their lives as the lead contractor, Trendgrey Construction, is planning to use two of them as site offices during the build.

We went out to take some last photos today for the archives and popped into the classrooms. Head of Geography, Mike Taylor has enjoyed being based in the portacabins, amidst the Warwickshire countryside, for the last eight years. He is pictured here with his Year 7 class.

Lower Sixth Formers Pratheesh Prabakaran, Toby Pearton and Annabel Koster are the winners of this year’s local Youth Speaks competition, the Rotary Club’s well-respected public speaking challenge. The Princethorpe College students saw off stiff competition from teams of pupils from other local schools in the district round held in Warwick on Wednesday 2 February.

Youth Speaks requires a team of three students to stand up and deliver a speech on a subject of their choice. It provides a great opportunity for young people to develop the ability to speak on a public platform, carry out research and formulate ideas, improve their self-confidence and presentation skills, and work together as a team.

Each competing team comprises of a Chairman, a Proposer and an Opposer. The Chairman introduces the debate and the Proposer and Opposer then speak for and against the motion. The structure of the event makes for an entertaining and diverting session where the students not only have to present clearly, but also spontaneously respond.

Competing in the Senior section, the team debated the motion ‘This house believes that issues of National Security should take precedence over all other legal considerations.’

Pratheesh Prabakaran, introduced the debate as Chairman, Toby Pearton spoke in favour of the motion and Annabel Koster against. The students were eloquent and convincing, and they handled challenging questions well. Their speech was very well received with the audience engaged throughout.

The team had worked hard to prepare thoroughly. They were helped and supported by Head of English, Chris Kerrigan who commented, “The chief adjudicator said the decision was unanimous and that it was rare for them all to agree. I knew they’d won immediately after their performance as it was so polished. It was a tightly fought competition and they put in an outstanding effort. These young people have been a joy to work with.”

The team thoroughly enjoyed the evening and learned a lot from listening to the other teams who took part. Congratulations to them all.

Two Princethorpe Sixth Form students are celebrating after achieving exceptional marks in their Trinity College of Music examinations. Greg Burford and Robyn Field, who both took up singing just last year, and who both played starring roles in the College’s production of Jesus Christ Superstar, have been awarded a Distinction in their Grade 8 singing exam.

Greg and Robyn sang four pieces each from a set syllabus and were also judged on technical exercises and their presentation and focus. Both delivered accomplished performances in front of the examiner and achieved impressive results. Marked out of 100, Greg scored 95 while Robyn was awarded 90, a superb achievement for these talented young singers.

Greg performed Du Bist Die Reh by Schubert, Take, O Take These Lips Away by Dring, De Son Coeur J’ai Calme De Fievre by Thomas and If I were A Rich Man by Bock. His examiner’s report included the comments: ‘This was an outstanding performance. Characterization was captivating, and there was complete accuracy and control’ and ‘Stylistic communication was outstanding, and the performance was delivered with passion.’

Robyn sang Poor Wand’ring One by Sullivan, Art Is Calling For Me by Herbert, Dear Delight by Head and Stizzoso, Mio Stizzoso by Pergolesi. Her examiner commented: ‘There was an impressive display of technique in fitting with the essence of the song’ and ‘This was a convincing rendition, and characterization was impressive.’

Peripatetic singing teacher, Joanna Kunda, commented, “Congratulations to Robyn and Greg for achieving a Distinction in their Grade 8 singing exam. These results are particularly remarkable, considering that both Robyn and Greg have never taken a singing exam before. Their hard work, together with their outstanding musicality, was rewarded with very high marks and extremely positive comments on their reports. I am proud of them both and wish them further successes in future.”

Director of Music, Gil Cowlishaw, who played for the students in their examinations, added, “For Robyn and Greg to receive such super results at such a high standard is an absolutely staggering achievement and one they should both be very proud of. We always encourage our students to aim high and they certainly did. They have taken part in many school productions and have always been a pleasure to work with. I am confident they will go on to great things.”

Both students are planning to carry on with their singing, Greg will be studying music at the University of Cambridge after completing his A-levels while Robyn plans to join a local operatic society and continue her performing there. Their performances have delighted us all over the years and wherever their music takes them we wish them both well!

The Warwickshire Schools County Cross Country Championships took place on Saturday 22 January at Kineton High School. 36 Princethorpe runners, drawn from across the school, competed against the best runners from Warwickshire schools in what is always a well contested event. All the cross-country training paid dividends with another excellent set of individual and team results for the College; team placings are based on the positions of the first four runners from a school.

The Junior Boys, Junior Girls and Inter Girls teams all placed first overall claiming the County Cross Country Championship titles.  Second place finishes for Ben Smith, Charlie Atkins and Martina Grace earned them silver medals and 10 pupils have qualified to run for the County Team in the ESAA National Championships on Saturday 19 March at Hopwood Farm in Kent.

The Minor Girls and Minor Boys ran 2.3km, the Junior Girls 3.3km, the Junior Boys and Inter Girls 3.9km and the Inter Boys 5.05km.

For the Minor Girls, Rosa Davis came home 6th followed by Clea Roach 23rd, Jessie Murphy 26th and Ellie Maffey 28th they helped the team to a fourth place finish. The Minor Boys went one better finishing in third place, with William Smith finishing 7th followed by Louis Reynolds 12th, Ollie Hawkins 16th, Freddie Stephenson 21st and Freddie Young 26th.

The Junior Girls ran superbly to claim team victory for Princethorpe. Martina Grace was 2nd over the line followed closely by Evie Marston 5th, then Lily Hunter 9th, Hannah Wildey 20th, Pip Evans 27th and Martha Summers 32th.

The Junior Boys did just as well also placing first, with Charlie Atkins finishing strongly in 2nd place, then Jesse Esler 6th, Oscar Civzelis 13th, William Gower 16th, Toby Iley 18th, Abbas Hazra 24th Sam Grindal 29th, Ned Roach 30th, Soren Wasley 34th and Adam Chambers 39th.

Excellent performances by cross country stalwarts Kate Pomerleau who finished in 6th, Ava Farren 7th, Grace Darcy 8th, Jess Evans 12th, Julia Loftus 17th, Kaena Wasley 18th and Emma Sarkies 19th helped the Inter Girls claim another first team place.

Finally for the Inter Boys, Ben Smith ran a great race to finish in 2nd place, followed home by Felix Batty 11th and Albert Jackson-Bettles 21st.

Head of Outdoor Education and PE Teacher, Will Bower commented, "It was good to see the College so well represented at the County Championships. Well done to all of our competitors, we saw some excellent personal performances in tough races. I am delighted with the overall team results, not least placing first in three of the age groups we entered."

The cross country teams also had a really successful day at Bedstone College on Wednesday 2 February in the ISA Cross Country Qualifier. We are just waiting on confirmation of the team places and will share news of the results as soon as we receive them.

Many congratulations to Lower Sixth Former Guy Schofield who has just been awarded an A grade in his Japanese IGCSE.

Guy’s interest in learning Japanese began back in the summer of 2020, in the first lockdown, when he came across YouTube language videos and began to teach himself. Guy had long been fascinated by the culture of Japan with its reverence for science and technology and learning the language was a logical next step. He began by learning Kanji, the Japanese writing characters and then, when he had mastered the basics, he started taking lessons with a tutor.

As his skill grew Guy decided to take his Japanese one step further and began studying for the Cambridge IGCSE. By this time, he was having lessons three times a week, all outside of school, in addition to his A-level studies. He sat the reading, writing and speaking exams at an exam centre in Coventry in October and in January received the superb news that he had achieved a grade A.

Guy is now studying for an A-level in Japanese and is planning to travel to Japan with his family in October (restrictions allowing) and hopes to go on to study Japanese at university.

His success is a lesson to us all, he has followed his interests, worked hard every week, at home, learning the language, the grammar, practising speaking, all at which he clearly excels. As Mr Hester noted in assembly this week, Guy’s tenacity and dedication are really outstanding, and we are all delighted to congratulate him on his impressive achievement.

Princethorpe College's U14 Boys Football team were the victors in the Plate after an excellent performance at the Independent Schools Association's (ISA) National Football Championships.

The six-a-side competition took place on Tuesday 25 January at Nottingham University. 19 teams travelled from across the country to take part in this year’s prestigious event.

The team started well and did not concede a single goal across the whole event. In their opening match they faced King Alfred School (the eventual Cup winners) and held them to a 0-0 draw. Next were Bredon School who were quickly dispatched 6-0. Their final pool game was against Cundall Manor School, a tight match that ended in another 0-0 draw. That placed the team second in their pool and qualified them for the Plate competition.

In the semi-final the boys faced Stafford Grammar School and capitalised on every opportunity for a super 1-0 win. They then took on St James Senior Boys’ School in the Plate final where their tenacity and resolve helped them to another fantastic 1-0 win.

Teacher of PE and Games, Ross Holtom, was thrilled and commented, "The whole squad of nine players were excellent today, they grew into the tournament as it progressed. Their attitude and commitment were outstanding and they fully deserved their success."

Playing for Princethorpe were Year 9 pupils: Eddie Arkesden, Bobby Chapman, Theo Coles, Alastair Forinton (Capt), William Gower, Sam James, Liam Mutukwa, André Onyekwe and Ned Roach.

Last Friday 28 January the College PTA hosted a super Scottish-themed extravaganza in aid of Mary’s Meals, a charity close to Princethorpe’s heart. The quiz celebrated Burns Night and proved to be a fabulous evening of fun for all. 

Hosted by Annabel Koster and Toby Pearton from the College’s Youth St Vincent de Paul group the evening featured Rabbie Burns’ renowned poetry, with a rendition of the great Scottish bard’s Address To A Haggis. It included six rounds of questions, with topics such as Geography, Music, Sport, Celebrities, Landmarks and General Knowledge all with a Scottish slant.

The event also included a silent auction for some wonderful prizes that included a framed Princethorpe Tower print and a signed London Irish Rugby ball, many thanks to Year 7 parent, John Dale, for his very generous bid.

The evening was free, but families were asked to donate to Mary’s Meals so the real winners, thanks to everyone’s amazing generosity, were the children at Makalanga School. Over the month of January and across all of the fundraising activities going on, donations to the Princethorpe4Makalanga page have totalled £2,471.38. A fantastic figure that benefits from the Mary’s Meals private donor  ‘Double The Love’ pledge to match funding.

Huge thanks to the PTA for all their hard work and to all who took part and donated to Mary’s Meals.

More information is available here: Princethorpe5Makalanga

Our Lower Sixth Geographers very much enjoyed their residential field trip last week. They visited the excellent Cranedale Centre at Kirby Grindalythe near Malton, in the Yorkshire Wolds to conduct field studies on costal places and regeneration in urban areas, both key topics for their A-level studies. The weather treated them fairly, staying dry and for the most part bright and the students worked hard to collect and analyse their data. As always, the trip was an invaluable learning experience that will assist them all in completing their coursework.  

The Year 11 Freshers’ Fair took place on Thursday 27 January providing another great opportunity for Year 11 pupils to investigate A-level subject choices and to find out more about life in the College’s Sixth Form.

Set out in the Sixth Form Centre Atrium, the host of subject stalls, included vivid displays, models and informative handouts. They were manned by enthusiastic Lower Sixth students who were more than happy to share their insights into the different subjects. Pupils had the chance to wander freely, to visit the stalls and to ask any questions they might have.

The Year 11s were also given the chance to visit the Sixth Form Resource Centre and Common Room to get a feel for some of the wider Sixth Form facilities and Sixth Form students and staff gave presentations on what life was like in the Sixth Form, including information on the many enrichment and leadership opportunities available and the different sorts of support.

Head of Sixth Form, Ben Collie, commented, “Some Year 11s already know what subjects they want to study at A-level but others are less sure. The Freshers’ Fair was an opportunity for pupils to speak with students already studying the subjects, as well as a chance for them all to come into the Sixth Form Centre on a busy school day. I know it will have helped facilitate our Year 11s decision making process.”

Year 5 and Year 6 pupils from local primary schools enjoyed an introduction to the sport of Rugby when they took part in Princethorpe's Try Tag Rugby event. The after-school session took place on Friday 21 January and was organised by the College's PE team on a cold but dry all-weather pitch.

Working in small groups, with Sixth Form students and coaching staff, the children started with some fun warm up activities. They then enjoyed skill building drills before finishing with a mini game played in front of an enthusiastic crowd of parents. Of course, after all that energetic fun the youngsters were sent on their way clutching certificates and legendary Princethorpe cookies.

Princethorpe College Head of Rugby, Peter Bucknall, was impressed at how well the children took to the sport commenting, “It was great to have so many enthusiastic boys and girls here on a Friday afternoon. They had a great time getting to grips with Tag Rugby, quickly mastering the game.”

The successful workshop was just one of a series of activities and opportunities the College organises for prospective pupils to introduce and familiarise youngsters with the school. Next up on the sporting front is Princethorpe’s High 5 Netball Tournament for local schools on Thursday 8 March and then in the Trinity Term we are offering our Say Hello to Hockey event for Year 4 and 5 children on Saturday 7 May.

The equestrian team and their hard-working support crew of parents are very much looking forward to the Bloxham School Arena Eventing Championships on Sunday 13 February. This is the culmination of monthly competitions throughout the winter at Aston Le Walls.

We have been extremely successful in qualifying two teams so far. The 80cm team is currently lying-in second place and the 90cm are in first position at the moment.

Individually at 80cm, Jess Hedgecock has produced some super rounds to be in 12th place with Rosie Moreton and Grace Paybody showing great skill to also qualify for the final. Emily Glover has also represented the school at this height.

At 90cm Sophie Glover is in first place, with Lottie Paybody, Jess Hedgecock and Claudia Newman also qualifying at this height.

Our 1m competitors sees Harriet Boyd currently in fifth place, with Robyn Field also in the final. Lucy Watts has also continued to represent the school in this class. The championship will see scores from that day added to the above to determine the final placings for the league.  Thank you to those competitors that have managed even one outing, gaining experience from our more established riders, which is so valuable for future years.

Good luck to everyone – Be kind, do your best and kick on for those points!

Louisa Fielding

The da Vinci lecture delivered by Dr Suzie Imber - My Life as a Space Scientist - is now available to view via Stream for any who missed it or would like to watch it again! It's a real treat for anyone who is interested not just in science and astronomy but also mountaineering and adventure. Here is the link:

My Life as a Space Scientist – Dr Suzie Imber

Helen Pascoe-Williams
Da Vinci, Learning Skills, EPQ Co-ordinator and English Teacher